The seven stone coffins were, in fact, small cuboid spaces. They were similar to coffins stuffed into a wall and resembled the cells in the organization's underground laboratory.
The positions where everyone's names were engraved were the locations of the coffins.
Tang Luo opened them all by punching them, respectively.
The instant they opened their own coffins, Zhou Zhenguo and Chu Chongtian didn't even have time to react, as they felt a spell of dizziness. Soon, they were lying in the coffins.
After they struggled and got out, they saw that they were still wearing their original clothes.
Tang Luo was standing inside the crypt, wearing his original sportswear clothes. Underneath his jacket, where a slight bulge was, was Ill Omens. A part of the revolver was stuffed into the inner pocket, keeping it from falling out.
As expected, Ill Omens was a piece of equipment that could be brought in and out of the mission world.
Tang Luo put his palms together, bowed his head, and recited several sentences from the Buddhist classics.
Inside the other stone coffins were the corpses of Li Liang and the others.
Zhou Zhenguo and Chu Chongtian sighed.
They had all been temporarily gathered to complete a mission, so it was impossible for them to have developed any real feelings for each other. Also, it would be hypocritical to speak of any significant grief.
However, they sighed silently in their hearts, as all beings would grieve for their fellow beings.
"It should be possible to open the door now," said Tang Luo.
Zhou Zhenguo approached the iron gate and tried opening it. Surprisingly, he opened the previously immovable door effortlessly now.
"So we've been moving around in our souls out of our bodies the whole time," said Chu Chongtian.
"This mission…"
Zhou Zhenguo felt his thoughts couldn't be described easily.
The whole mission had been centered around a world of dead souls. Everyone they had met had been souls, and Jack the Ripper had been the soul in the soul and the dead among the dead.
Given these, all kinds of strange events this far could be explained.
How had Li Liang been able to rise from the dead? Because, at that time, he hadn't really died. At most, he had received a soul injury.
Why had the city residents' bodies and even bloodstains disappeared? Jack the Ripper had devoured them.
There was even a probable answer about the abyss-like chasm's existence. It might be the boundary between the world of the living and the world of the dead.
This mysterious small city was actually long gone from the world. Maybe it was just what had happened before being repeated continuously.
Perhaps it would wait for the next batch of Employees of Gods and Demons to start the mission once again.
…
The trio walked downward, walking on the road toward the world of the living.
At the same time, the surroundings seemed to shake slightly.
Although Master Xuanzang had killed Jack the Ripper, Zhou Zhenguo and Chu Chongtian couldn't help but quicken their footsteps, anyway.
Tang Luo's footsteps paused slightly. He looked back briefly, before continuing down.
A few minutes later…
A carriage from which the outside couldn't be seen was shaking slightly from the movement. It was transporting Tang Luo and the others back to the real world.
Suddenly, three beams of light appeared out of thin air and fell on the three.
"Psst… Ahhh!" Chu Chongtian couldn't help but utter a moan.
He was like a man who had been tired for three days and three nights, soaking in a warm hot spring—all his fatigue began to disappear.
However, the whole process was short. It stopped when Chu Chongtian felt he had recovered and was going to enjoy it properly.
"This is treatment." Zhou Zhenguo explained, "The treatment after the mission is completed. But not exactly. I think recovery is a more suitable word to describe it."
"Hmm." Tang Luo nodded.
F*ck treatment!
It was a cup of water to prevent them from dying from thirst at best.
It could only give the dying Employees of Gods and Demons a chance to return to the real world, go to the hospital, and say that they could still be rescued.
For Tang Luo, it had ended before it had started.
Gods and Demons were actually that stingy.
The model of completing the mission against a BOSS with no regard for one's own life and expecting to return and heal all injuries was clearly not encouraged in the Game of Gods and Demons.
Furthermore, there were also missions, such as the one just now, where one couldn't return immediately, and even the returning method was part of the mission.
Going to a specific place to return after fighting to the edge of death was too sad.
"Did you get any skills?" asked Zhou Zhenguo. "I've got new skills."
Chu Chongtian nodded.
The light beam not only provided a little recovery but, more importantly, rewarded them with skills.
When the light beams enshrouded them, the information related to the skills appeared quietly like how the mission appeared.
They had all acquired skills.
Zhou Zhenguo's face was jubilant, smiling so widely that his gum showed. "There's actually this kind of reward for not dying after six missions, eh?"
Chu Chongtian, who was repeatedly reading before the information disappeared, couldn't help but ask, "What?"
"Passive Strengthening Skill," said Zhou Zhenguo. "Not dying after six missions, rewards you with a comprehensive strengthening of physical qualities, in aspects of strength, reaction speed, endurance, resilience, ability to recover, and so on."
"That's so good," said Chu Chongtian.
That was an all-rounded improvement. More importantly, it opened a gap between an Employee of Gods and Demons and an ordinary person. Such body-strengthening skills were better than simply relying on consumable skills and not being much stronger than ordinary people without them.
"You can also obtain such a skill, so long as you go through six missions," said Zhou Zhenguo.
This skill was not randomly rewarded. All Employees of Gods and Demons who had gone through six missions and hadn't perished would get it.
It should be considered as the Gods' and Demons' acknowledgment, and the reward for passing the newbie phase, right?
"Other than this skill, my real mission reward is the skill, Tide of Recovery," added Zhou Zhenguo.
Tide of Recovery recovered injuries and various physical abnormalities at breakneck speed. However, its every use would consume more than a year of longevity. Also, the lifespan consumed would increase in relation to the injury's severity.
Zhou Zhenguo disclosed some information to Tang Luo and Chu Chongtian, expressing his goodwill.
If one day they met an opponent with similar skills, they could use it for reference.
It also showcased his strength. Of course, this was not for intimidation, but to show Tang Luo that he had sufficient strength. If they met again in the future, they could still complete missions together, and he would definitely not be a burden.
"Ha, mine is a mobility skill!"
After Zhou Zhenguo, Chu Chongtian also spoke out about the skills he had acquired.
The skill was called Wind Running, and strong wind would wrap the user's body to make a quick advance across a short distance.
They all had received information on their skills, and they were not as simple as they described them.
The detailed description of Chu Chongtian's Wind Running that formed in his mind was as followed:
[Wind Running]: Wraps the whole body in strong wind to make a quick advance across a short distance.
Level 1: The maximum advance distance is 20 meters. Cooldown: 2 hours.
Level 2: The maximum advance distance is 40 meters. Cooldown: 1 hour.
Level 3: The maximum advance distance is 60 meters, with tearing and cutting effects around the body. Cooldown: 30 minutes.
Remarks: As long as I move fast enough, my teammates cannot catch up with me.
Under ordinary circumstances, nobody would be so careless as to disclose everything about the skills they acquired.
Although Tang Luo's group looked like it cooperated happily, this was based on Tang Luo's extraordinary battle prowess.
Instances of underhanded methods, mutual undermining, and infighting were abundant among Employees of Gods and Demons. Thus, it was already rare for people like Chu Chongtian and Zhou Zhenguo to disclose partial aspects of their skills out of goodwill.
Zhou Zhenguo exclaimed, "Then my remark is -1s—"
Chu Chongtian interrupted Zhou Zhenguo, "Then, Master, your reward—"
At that point, Chu Chongtian froze as he felt awkward.
'It's all Uncle Zhou's fault. He's anyhow talking! I said something inappropriate again!'
Although they were willing to disclose, it didn't mean that Tang Luo was willing, too.
People would only disclose partial information about their skills to each other when they were planning to become partners and deal with a mission together.
After the end of the mission, asking someone about their reward was almost like asking people for their address because their hometown was well-known for producing good
It was very inappropriate!
Tang Luo didn't get angry and said with a smile, "Airy Palm Hit. The user waves their palm in the air, turning a close-range battle to a long-distance one."
[Airy Palm Hit]: An attack that releases force to form an invisible attack by hitting at the air with the palm.
Level 1: Upper limit is 10 meters, with a power attenuation of 50%. Cooldown: 2 hours.
Level 2: Upper limit is 30 meters, with a power attenuation of 40%. Cooldown: 1 hour.
Level 3: Upper limit is 40 meters, with a power attenuation of 20%. Cooldown: 30 minutes.
Additional Skill: [Expansion]. The attack range can be expanded to a certain extent.
Note: Do you remember a palm hit method that comes from the sky?
"I'm going to call it Gautama's Palm Hit," said Tang Luo. "Remember to keep it secret."
Tang Luo was satisfied with this skill and renaming it as Gautama's Palm Hit was very fitting for his Buddha identity.
To earn merits, one had to have a good enough appearance.
This was an era that rewarded good looks, after all.
Uh… no. The entire history consisted of eras that rewarded good looks, even among the primitives.
Although primitive humans knocked down the ones they liked and dragged them back to their caves, where did that liking come from? Wasn't it from appearances, after all?
"Hmm, this name is good. It's Gautama's Palm Hit then." Chu Chongtian congratulated him, smiling.
The same went for Zhou Zhenguo.
Airy Palm Hit and such could be forgotten.
"Oh yeah!" Zhou Zhenguo remembered something and briefly glanced at Ill Omens under Tang Luo's jacket. "I heard that weapons could be stored in the real world."
"Stored?"
When that word was spoken, their surroundings suddenly became noisy. The originally quiet and worn-out carriage became bright, clean, and bustling.
All of a sudden, they had returned to the real world.
Tang Luo gave the passenger beside him a look.
He was still using his phone. He had not realized that Tang Luo beside him had disappeared and reappeared. From their perspectives, Tang Luo should have been there the entire time and never left.
Tang Luo withdrew his gaze and looked toward the rapidly retreating scenery outside the window.
Then he unzipped his jacket halfway, reaching in and pressing his hand on the revolver, Ill Omens.
Shortly, the black, cool revolver disappeared without a trace.
Tang Luo could sense that Ill Omens was inside his right hand and could be taken out when needed. Nevertheless, it would take some time.
If he found himself in a perilous situation, he would have no chance to take it out.
This type of storage merely gave the Employees of Gods and Demons some convenience in the real world.
One must know that Employees of Gods and Demons could not disclose information about the Game of Gods And Demons to outsiders.
Ill Omens was an acceptable weapon, as its volume was not so big, and it could be hidden.
If someone got a weapon like an RPG, then suddenly appeared after completing a mission, and bumped into someone, that would be a pretty scene.